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Alienware 2.66GHz Upgrade of Video Card

Last response: in Graphics & Displays
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Hello, my name is Bill. I am having issues with my old Area-51 desktop. The system locks up and the screen goes all different colors and shakes. I am thinking it is a video card. Here are my system specifics:

Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q9450 @ 2.66GHz
RAM: 2.00 GB
Graphics: NVIDA GeForce 9800 GX2
Gaming Graphics: 1279 MB Total available graphics memory
HDD: 120GB Free (225GB Total)

I want to upgrade this system and would love suggestions for that also.

Thanks for your time!!

Bill
OS: Vista Home Premium 32-bit

More about : alienware 66ghz upgrade video card

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Graphics card Authority

Hello,

Your screen going different colors and shaking is either a sign of your GPU failing - or possibly a loose connector (i suspect the former).

Also taking into the account of how old your parts are - I cannot recommend you upgrading that desktop, as the amount of money you will spend to get it "upgraded" would give you minimal performance returns, due to your whole platform (Core 2 is around 3 generations behind the latest cpu's now).

What you could try is re-seating your video card:

Shut down your computer. Unplug it from the wall, now open up your case and take out your GPU. While you have taken it out - inspect it a little to see if there is anything physically wrong with it (burn marks, heat sink not totally on, fan cannot spin freely, etc). Plug your GPU back in. Try running it again after that.
 
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